Are you thinking about VoIP migration, i.e. moving from a conventional PBX, Key System or Centrex phone system to IP telephony, but are concerned about the costs and the real benefits of such a move? You are not alone. Many articles have been written detailing reasons for delaying the migration to VoIP but most of these issues are myths that have been busted over the past few years.

Internet-based phone calls will provide your business long term benefits. Most companies are now realizing a cost savings of between 50-80% over the operational costs of traditional telephony. And that it is not at a cost of inferior or unacceptable call quality. This misconception about call quality is just that, a misconception. By using Quality of Service (QoS) management in the LAN and your connection to the Internet you can ensure the highest call quality available. It really comes down to how good your ISP is and the Internet in general as to packet loss and delay. Expectations nowadays about low call quality are over done and improvements in that quality continue.

There are also concerns that the set up and management of your VoIP program is costly and difficult and new technology is more troublesome that it is worth. Everything that is new can be difficult but numerous companies stand ready to advise on and assist with VoIP migration. Once installed the system is often no more difficult and generally easier to run that the legacy phone system you have been using for many years.

Although there are significant operational savings, there also can be significant time requirements and costs involved in first determining what system to adopt and then in implementing the agreed system. A complete “rip and replace” scenario requires not only the acquisition of the IP PBX (if you go with a premise based system), but the cost of the IP phones, the Power over Ethernet (PoE)  switches required to power those phones and the cost and time involved to install the necessary cabling to run the voice network.

So how can you save yourself some time and money? You can use a VoIP enabler, companies  that lets you piggy back your IP network over your existing cabling. This works but still requires the cost of installing Category Five cabling. There are also cards that can be added to your legacy PBX that enables you to use that same wiring but with that solution you still require the legacy PBX. With many of them having reached End of Life, the cost and ability to service and maintain those units gets more difficult and more expensive.

Your most cost and time effective solution is Citel’s Portico Telephone VoIP Adapter (TVA). This media gateway enables you to SIP enable your legacy handsets meaning there is no need to upgrade your cabling as you migrate to VoIP. As this upgrade tends to be the most time consuming part of the migration it speeds up the process and as you are SIP enabling your existing phones, you save money as you no longer need IP phones or PoE switches. And you can get rid of the legacy PBX saving money there as well. Any doubts, bring in a Portico TVA, unplug a couple of legacy handsets from your switch, plug them into the TVA and then route the TVA to an IP PBX and try it for yourself. If you are not satisfied, you can unplug the phones, plug them back into your PBX and everything reverts to the way it was. How much easier could it be?

The Portico TVA comes in versions that work with digital, analog and Centrex phones, in 12 or 24 port, rack mountable boxes and with zero, one or two FXO ports for survivability. Call your local Citel representative for more information.